Trust
by Allyson
Summary: “You-you really think I’d turn you all in to Venger to save myself?” Eric said, shocked. Eric is used as bait by Venger.


**Dungeons and Dragons – Trust**.

By Allyson Dudley.

(A/N – I do not own anything of _Dungeons and Dragons_ – just my very lame story plot).

"I can't believe they just turned us in like that after we helped them battle that gross Ogre," Diana sounded more stunned than indignant as she prowled the cramped interior of their cell.

After helping the local village get rid of a bothersome ogre that had been stealing their food and generally smashing houses for fun, the locals had handed over Dungeon Master's pupils and weapons to Venger in return for their safety against any future attacks. Venger had gloated at the teenagers as he took their weapons away before locking them in a parapet of his castle overlooking a sheer drop off a mountain. There had been no chance for an escape.

"They were just scared," Sheila replied, from where she sat on the cold floor, with Uni sitting on her lap. Hank, who sat beside her, nodded in agreement.

"I just can't believe they would do that," continued Diana.

"Would you quit pacing?" complained Eric, sighing in frustration as both he and Presto had to hurriedly move their feet out of the way to avoid being stepped on. "This place isn't a running track you know. You're making me dizzy just watching you."

"I guess it would take a lot of bravery to stand up against Venger if your home and family were in danger," murmured Presto, ignoring Eric's complaint. "Not many people would risk their lives."

"Buncha cowards," sneered Bobby, trying not to shiver from the cold draughty wall he was leaning against. "No wonder Eric fit in so well there."

Eric's head snapped up to look at the younger boy, who was now scratching Uni's mane in an effort to calm her. Bobby missed the hurt and angry look speared towards him. Hank saw it, however, and was surprised that Eric had taken the barb to heart.

"You-you really think I'd turn you all in to Venger to save myself?" Eric said, shocked.

Bobby looked startled at Eric's reply. "Eric, it was just a joke."

"Do you guys believe that too?"

Though there was an instant collective response of "No," "Of course not" and "Don't be silly, Eric," the Cavalier could easy read the ashamed and guilty expressions they all tried to mask.

"Fine," replied Eric, stiffly, trying to mask the hurt in his voice. "It's good to know where I finally stand with you guys."

With that, he moved away from the group and lay with his back to his friends, without another word.

"Bobby," scolded Sheila, upset. "That was cruel."

"Eric-"

"Presto, give him some space," Hank said, stopping the Magician from shaking the Cavalier's shoulder. "Maybe he'll be okay after some sleep."

"Yeah," agreed Diana, trying to sound positive. "He'll realize Bobby didn't mean it and he'll be willing to forgive us."

Sheila and Presto exchanged uncertain glances before moving to sit next to Eric.

Shutting his eyes, Eric forced himself to block out their voices and not give into the despair that had started to overwhelm him.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The sun was barely rising outside when an Orc guard entered the Young One's cell and unceremoniously dumped a flagon of warm water and a stale loaf of bread onto the floor. What the Orc guard hadn't expected was to be rushed at by the Ranger, Barbarian, Cavalier and Acrobat. Taken by surprise, he fell to the floor knocking himself unconscious on the stone floor.

With Hank in the lead they quickly left their cell and cautiously left the tower. The base of the tower deposited the young group into a large hall. To their relief, there was no sign of any other Orcs to find them.

"Hank, look," whispered Sheila, pausing as they ran to the heavy set doors that led out of the castle.

Hank stopped and looked to where she was pointing. On a table in the corner of the room lay Presto's magic hat, Sheila's cloak and Diana's staff.

"Where's the rest of our weapons?" asked Bobby, confused.

"Maybe it's a trap," murmured Presto, worried.

"We've no choice but to risk it," responded Hank, as the sound of angry Orc voices swept into the room. "Grab them and go."

Diana grabbed the three magic weapons and they dived out of the door. They made it out to the courtyard and were approaching the nearby forest line when the teenagers heard the whinnying of Venger's horse, Nightmare, descending upon them.

"Scatter!" ordered Hank, as Venger swooped towards the group. He watched as Sheila, Bobby, Uni and Diana dived into the safety of the trees.

Turning, Hank saw Eric push Presto ahead of him into the bushes as Nightmare came to land in the same spot that Presto had previously been standing. Realising his escape route had been blocked, Eric turned to run around the horse and towards Hank. Hank's shout of warning came too late as Venger hurled a bolt of electric blue energy at the Cavalier. Eric cried out in pain and fell bonelessly to the ground. Hank avoided the next energy bolt by diving into the tree line. By the time he'd picked himself up and gone back to help his friend, both Venger and Eric were gone.

- - - - - - - - - - -- -

Eric awoke slowly with a painful headache. As he opened his eyes, he found he was back in the main hall of Venger's castle. Sighing in resignation, he looked around him and found that he was tied to what appeared to be a giant wooden wheel by his wrists and ankles. Tugging out of his bonds proved fruitless – Venger definitely didn't want him going anywhere soon. As Eric was thinking this, Venger himself entered the room and glared at him.

"That was a very foolish stunt you and your friends pulled," Venger growled. "I will make you suffer for their insolence."

"What are you going to do? Roll me into a wall?" shot back Eric, even though a small part of him was begging himself to shut up. "Make me a trophy token on the side of your cart?"

"Silence, Cavalier," sneered Venger, a ball of energy forming in his outstretched hand. "This time you will not defeat me."

"Oh, yeah?" mocked Eric, unimpressed. "We've defeated you before. Let's face it; your IQ's only a fraction higher than your hired Orc guards."

He braced himself for the blow he knew he deserved, but was surprised when nothing happened. The ball of energy in Venger's hand had transformed into an oval turquoise disc the size of his palm.

"Brave words but not for long," Venger told him, coldly. "This disc will be your slow death. Every minute that your friends waste will drain your life force from you. They will be the cause of your death if they don't give back the weapons they stole from me."

Eric tried not to show the panic and fear he felt as he said, "I don't have any friends. You may as well just kill me now."

Venger laughed and the sound made Eric feel sick. "We shall see, Cavalier."

He stepped closer to Eric and pressed the turquoise disc to the young boy's chest. Eric screamed out in pain as the disc seemed to melt into his clothes and armour and burn into his chest. Instantly, Eric felt a depressingly heavy weight descend upon him and he became exhausted just keeping his head up and his eyes open. Venger laughed triumphantly before sweeping out of the room.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It took almost an hour for the group of friends to meet back up in a small clearing not far from Venger's castle. They had become split up in their haste to escape Venger. Presto, in the confusion, had been pursued by two Orc guards. Hank had only managed to find him and help him by the billowing smoke coming out of the Magician's hat. Diana and Sheila individually stumbled on Bobby accidentally at the same time. Sheila's brother had spent a good twenty minutes trying to persuade Uni down from a tree she had teleported herself into. In the end, both Bobby and Diana had to climb the tree and gently hand her down to Sheila.

"Where's Eric?" asked Sheila, immediately noticing his absence with concern.

Hank looked grave. "Venger's got him," he responded, quietly. He then told the others what had happened after Eric had pushed Presto to safety.

"We have to go back," Presto said, upset.

"It could be a trap," pointed out Diana, though she lacked conviction.

"I think it is," agreed Hank. "But we have to get Eric."

"And we need to do it soon," agreed Presto. "Who knows what trouble he'll get himself into?"

"What are we waiting for?" demanded Bobby, who had been feeling guilty about upsetting Eric the night before. "Let's go."

Sheila managed to catch him by the shoulder before he could go storming off.

"Guys," said Hank, thinking. "We need a plan."

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

Using her invisibility cloak, Sheila crept back into the main hall of Venger's castle. She stifled a gasp as she realized she'd almost stepped on the back of Venger's cloak. She hadn't expected the sorcerer to be nearby. Then she realized why. Tied upside-down on a wooden wheel, red cloak pooling on the floor, Eric looked truly ill. His eyes were closed and his face had taken on a grey pallor. He looked thinner than she'd seen him less than two hours before. She tried to see if he was breathing and instead saw a faint turquoise glow coming from the copper breast plate he wore. She stifled the urge to cry and run to him.

"It will not be long before your life force is completely drained from you," Venger was taunting the barely conscious boy. "How disappointing your friends did not try to rescue you. Do you really mean so little to them?"

"I don't have any friends." The words barely came out as a whisper and Sheila felt tears spill from her eyes as she heard the conviction in his words.

"I will give you one last chance to live," replied Venger. "Tell me where your friends will have run to and I will send you home."

Eric didn't respond, his eyes remained closed and, if possible, seemed to become paler.

Raising his hand in anger, Venger slapped Eric's face, leaving deep scratches in his cheek. Eric's head lolled to the side but he didn't respond with a snappy comeback. This seemed to anger Venger even more and he swept out of the room, slamming the door shut behind him. Even then Eric failed to move.

Abandoning caution, Sheila swiftly moved to Eric's side and knelt on the floor so they were both head height. She tentatively touched his injured cheek and was dismayed to find that her touch didn't produce a reaction.

"Oh, Eric," she sobbed. "I'm so sorry."

"No . . . friends." It was more a sigh than a whisper but Sheila heard him. She looked at Eric in shock as she realized he was still conscious.

"Hold on, Eric," she whispered into his ear. "We haven't left you. We'll get you out of here, I promise." She brushed his fringe out of his eyes, and his eyelids flickered slightly as if he was struggling to wake up. "You'll always be my friend, just promise me you won't give up."

She rushed back to the door and signalled for Hank and the gang that it was safe for them to enter. They all looked similarly shocked at the sight of Eric's ill appearance.

"Oh, Hank," Sheila said, wiping tears from her eyes. "I heard Eric tell Venger he has no friends. Venger's using him as bait to capture us."

"That will never happen," he reassured her. "Sheila, keep an eye out – make sure no-one is coming. Bobby, Diana, have a look around. See if you can find our missing weapons. Presto? Let's get Eric down from that wheel."

Everyone nodded and went about their assigned tasks. Presto and Hank turned the wheel that Eric hung from around so that the blood was no longer rushing to his head. Hank managed to untie the bonds that held Eric and between himself and Presto they supported Eric between them. They shared an anxious look as Eric sagged forwards, his eyes closed and his head limp. Behind them, Diana had triggered a secret compartment set into the wall and found their missing weapons.

"Hey, look what we found!" she called out as she held up the magic bow and shield. Bobby grinned in delight as he stood holding his club again.

"That's great guys," encouraged Hank. "We better go now before Venger comes back for Eric."

"Yeah and quickly," agreed Sheila, appearing in the doorway. "I can hear voices coming this way."

The group left the room, Bobby in the lead and Diana bringing up the rear to fend off any trouble. Hank and Presto half-carried half-dragged Eric out of the castle. They had just made it into the forest when they heard the cry of Orcs leaving the castle in search of them.

"Keep going!" ordered Hank, though he could see that Presto was already tiring. "Don't split up – stay together!"

It felt like they'd been running for hours before the sound of pursuing Orcs faded into the distance. A rumble of thunder could be heard above them and they faintly heard Venger call out, "You may have escaped with your weapons this time but you are too late to save your friend!" before the surrounding forest became silent again. Hank signalled to his friends to stop and rest. They gently placed Eric on the soft ground and were disturbed when the boy remained motionless; not even stirring when Uni nuzzled the side of his head. The blood from the scratches on his face had crusted up and stood out against his pale face.

Presto reached over to check Eric's pulse when he noticed the glowing turquoise disc for the first time. He pulled his hand back cautiously. "What's that?" asked Presto.

The others gathered around to take a closer look.

"Do you think that's what's made Eric so ill?" asked Diane.

"I don't know," Hank replied, frowning. "But I bet Venger put it there."

"This is all my fault," Bobby said, sounding distressed. "I didn't mean to upset him, sis."

"I know, Bobby," consoled Sheila, hugging him.

"How do we get that thing off him?" asked Presto, still staring at the disc.

Before anyone could reply, Eric's breathing started to become erratic and he began gulping air as if he was fighting suffocation. His body began to shake, making his friends jump in alarm. Nobody knew what to do to help him and they found themselves watching in despair and hopelessness.

"I wish Dungeon Master were here to tell us what's wrong with Eric," said Sheila, tears flowing down her cheeks.

"I am here, my child," came a voice from behind a nearby tree.

"Dungeon Master!"

"Dungeon Master, can you help Eric?" asked Presto, watching as the little man walked over to Eric's shivering form.

The man looked gravely down at the young Cavalier's face and shook his head sadly. "I had hoped that Venger would never resort to such devices," he said, quietly. "This disc was designed to remove the life energy from your friend until only death is the answer. But for it to be so advanced in this stage must mean the Cavalier must have been suffering from extremely low moral."

"But you can save him, right?" Hank asked, feeling his hope fading.

Dungeon Master closed his eyes and reached his hands out so that they rested over the glowing disc. After a moment's concentration, the turquoise disc rose from Eric's chest and rested in Dungeon Master's palms. With a clap of his hands it disappeared in a trail of smoke. Eric became still and his breathing evened out. Colour came back into his face but he still looked ill. Presto reached out to take his pulse and Eric stirred momentarily at the brief contact.

"I have removed the magic that ailed him," Dungeon Master announced, briefly resting one hand on Eric's forehead. Eric seemed to relax. "However, the rest is up to you. The young Cavalier will need the support of his friends to recover."

"Thanks, Dungeon -"

"He's gone!" exclaimed Bobby, before Hank could finish his sentence.

"Okay, guys," said Hank, briefly looking around at their surroundings. "We'll set up camp here for tonight. Let's see if there's any food and water for Eric."

Everyone nodded and all but Presto and Uni left. Presto tried to make Eric as comfortable as possible before sitting down next to him. He was just contemplating whether to use his hat to try and conjure up a blanket and a pillow when a groan from Eric distracted him. As he watched, Eric's eyes slowly began to blink open.

"Hi, Eric," smiled Presto, waving his hand at his friend. Eric mouthed, "Presto?" but seemed too exhausted to speak out loud. Presto nodded and continued, "Don't worry, you're safe now."

"Safe?" repeated Eric, looking around to realize that he was no longer on the wheel and was actually lying in a forest.

"Yeah," nodded Presto, encouragingly. "We rescued you and Dungeon Master took away that glowing thing from your chest. You didn't think your friends would leave you behind, did you?"

"Don't have any friends," Eric managed to croak, looking away.

"Don't talk like that," Presto scolded, distressed. "You've been my best friend since we were five-years-old. And I know you would never hand us over to Venger."

After a moment, Eric looked back at the Magician and Presto knew everything was okay between them.

"Presto, I don't feel well," Eric admitted, his voice slowly regaining confidence.

"I know," responded Presto, sympathetically. "We'll look after you. Just don't expect a five-star service in the middle of a forest. Though, we probably could find some grapes around here."

Eric snorted and the sound made Presto feel better. It told him Eric was on his way to being back to normal.

"You know, Bobby didn't mean what he said back in the tower, don't you?" Presto said, after a moment's silence. He watched his friend's expression closely as Eric turned his head away.

Eric frowned and replied, doubt still evident in his voice, "I guess."

"Honest, Eric, I didn't mean it," Bobby's quiet but insistent voice startled the two boys.

Presto looked up to see Bobby standing nearby, his arms filled with dry branches. He looked both upset and ashamed as he glanced at Eric. Eric eyed him cautiously.

"I'm really sorry," the younger boy apologized. "Are we still friends?"

Presto nudged Eric sharply in the ribs causing the Cavalier to wince in pain. "Sure, squirt," relented Eric, with a tired sigh.

A huge grin spread across the Barbarian's expression. "Thanks!"

"Eric! You're awake!" called out Diana, in surprise and relief, as she, Hank and Sheila returned. They were all carrying various fruits and berries and Sheila had used Bobby's hat to collect some water in. "We were worried about you."

"How are you feeling, pal?" asked Hank, patting Eric's shoulder to reassure himself that Eric was okay.

Eric looked at him warily before looking back at Presto. Presto could easily read the struggle Eric was having with himself. He desperately wanted to feel part of the group again but he'd convinced himself that they didn't trust him.

"He's okay, Hank," Presto replied for his friend. "He's just being paranoid again." He ignored the glare that the Cavalier aimed at him.

Hank seemed to understand and said, "Eric, you know you're my friend still, don't you? We all trust you. It's just that sometimes you can be a little . . . hard-headed at times. But our differences are what makes us part of a team."

Eric's expression went from doubt to embarrassment to relief. He gave him a genuine smile. "Thanks," he murmured. "Sorry, guys."

"We're the ones who should be sorry," exclaimed Sheila, as she helped Eric drink some of the water. Eric seemed to gain some more colour in his cheeks after drinking more of the water and eating some of their scavenged food.

The rest of the fading afternoon was spent making Eric more comfortable by lighting a fire and keeping Eric amused by telling stories to one another. Darkness soon fell over the forest and one by one the Young Ones drifted into sleep.

Eric slept fitfully. Nightmares of waking up in the morning and finding that he'd been left on his own plagued him. Sheila, who had fallen asleep nearby, was woken by the sound of Eric talking in his sleep. "Don't . . . don't hurt me, please . . . I would never turn you in . . . Don't leave me alone here . . . please, I'm sorry, guys . . ."

Careful not to wake Presto who also slept nearby, Sheila crawled over to where Eric slept, frowning in concern when she saw his distressed expression. Reaching out a hand, she gently shook Eric's shoulder. "Eric, wake up! You're having a bad dream."

"Sheila!" Eric bolted up into a sitting position, breathing erratically. "Where's Sheila?"

"Shh," Sheila soothed, rubbing his arm to calm him down. "I'm right here, Eric. You were having a bad dream, everything's okay."

"I'm okay," he murmured after calming down. He looked embarrassed as he realized he must have woken her up. "I'm sorry, I woke you."

Sheila smiled. "That's okay. "

After a moment of staring at his hands, Eric quietly asked, "Did you mean what you said in Venger's hall? That I was your friend?"

"Always," promised Sheila. When Eric yawned, she suggested, "You need to sleep if you want to feel better." Noticing Eric's reluctant expression, she added, "Both me and Presto will be sleeping right next to you. No-one's going to leave you on your own. You promise to trust me?"

Eric nodded as he settled back on the ground. "I trust you."

The next morning, Eric would discover that Sheila had kept her word and everyone would still be with him when he awoke. However, for now he was happy just to sleep knowing he was once again amongst friends.

The End.


End file.
